WhatsApp’s next big thing is a feature you didn’t know you needed.

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(Pocket-lint) – WhatsApp is working on a new feature that will allow messages to disappear as soon as they’ve been read by their recipient, improving privacy.

The feature, currently being tested by WhatsApp and available in the app’s latest beta on Android, automatically expires a message as soon as it’s been read. Messages posted can then no longer be viewed or retrieved, ensuring that what was sent remains private. These messages also cannot be forwarded or copied.

WhatsApp already offers single-view media, including photos and videos, but this is the first time this feature has been applied to text. And just like the media, anyone who screenshots the text is expected to see it redacted in some way.

The new feature has not been officially announced and there is no way to confirm when it will be made available to the public. However, WhatsApp is normally pretty good at advancing features from beta to public release, so we can be pretty sure we’ll see view-once messages sooner or later.

The ability to send a message that will self-destruct when viewed has obvious uses, and not just in the Mission Impossible movies. Sending passwords via WhatsApp is not something we recommend, but it could be done that way. Other personal information can also be shared this way, knowing that it will be deleted once seen.

Written by Oliver Haslam.